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Costa Rica 2022: Swimming in La Fortuna Waterfall

Our Costa Rica agenda was funny. We started in Osa, the most off-the-beaten-path corner of the country – accessible only by boat or small plane (unless you wanted to drive probably ten hours over bumpy dirt roads) and sought out generally by the most hardcore of nature lovers. Then we moved up to Monteverde, which was definitely more populated and more visited by tourists, but relatively relaxed all the same. And we finished our trip in Arenal, based in the bustling town of La Fortuna, which – thanks to an abundance of hot springs – is probably the most touristy part of the entire country. But all the same, we were not planning to seek out the biggest tourist attraction in La Fortuna – Catarata Rio Fortuna. Instead, we had designs on renting kayaks on Lake Arenal, and taking in the imposing view of Arenal from the water. Arenal had other plans, though: it kicked up a massive rainstorm that sent us fleeing inside from the restaurant deck while we were eating a pre-paddle lunch, and scrambling to find another activity for the afternoon (because even after the rain stopped, the wind and waves continued).

Enter the Rio Fortuna waterfall.

Steve suggested it as an alternative; I agreed without any idea of what the activity was all about – I hadn’t even researched it past hearing it was a big tourist attraction and deciding to skip it (since we’d already seen the incredible Catarata Rio Celeste). My first indication that it was something different came at the Disney-esque ticket booths just off the parking lot, and the lines of bikini-clad tourists. This doesn’t seem to be an ordinary hike to a waterfall? Suspicions were confirmed as we walked along the manicured path past a snack restaurant and a large gift shop – all of which we passed before catching our first glimpse of the waterfall.

The only ones dressed for hiking, not swimming – ready to walk 500 steps down to the waterfall.

We climbed down the stairs – I’m not kidding about there being 500, that’s exactly how many there were, and with each step down I worried more about the climb back up – and picked our way over the rocks and around the swimmers to check out the waterfall. (Hiking boots do come in handy, folks.) Going by the grimaces on the faces of the few people who had actually gotten in the water, I gathered it was very cold.

We sat on the rocks and took in the view for awhile – touristy, yes, but darn spectacular all the same. The water cascaded down in a thinner stream than Catarata Rio Celeste, and the pool below was a deeper green-blue: just stunning. After a few minutes of sitting and gazing, though, I started to get a bit of an itch. A little voice in my head started to whisper…

It would be a shame to come all this way and not jump in.

You’ll probably never come back here. This is probably your only chance.

It’s an adventure.

Wet clothes will feel nice walking up all those stairs.

Well, I’m not one to turn down an adventure. I took off my boots and socks and waded onto the first layer of submerged rocks, then jumped forward. The water was frigid and the waves kicking back from the waterfall kept slapping me in the face so that I could barely see anything but water.

I think I had a giant grin on my face the entire time.

I think I stayed in for about ten minutes? I don’t really know – it was cold, and time seemed to slow down. I did manage to tread water while several couples hopped in and then out, shivering, so I felt pretty bad@$$ for that.

Jumping into Catarata Rio Fortuna with all of my clothes on definitely wasn’t the plan for the afternoon – but it was an experience I won’t forget.

Next week: wrapping up our time in Costa Rica with an encounter with one of its most iconic wildlife species.

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Marine Corps Marathon Weekend 2022

My favorite race of the year is the Marine Corps 10K, run on the same day as the Marine Corps Marathon – everything from the start on the National Mall to the finish at Iwo Jima and the U.S. Marines on hand to pass out medals is just iconic. I ran the race in-person before the pandemic, ran it twice as a virtual event – good to keep up with it, but not the same – and this year was back (woefully undertrained as usual, but at least I had months worth of Peloton to draw upon) toeing the start line at the National Gallery of Art. And this year was extra special because we had two events to enjoy – starting on Saturday with the MCM Kids’ Run.

Nugget ran the virtual MCM Kids’ Run – then called the “Semper Fun Run” – in 2020, and when I asked him if he was interested in trying out his first in-person race he was all about it. The guy has yet to meet a sport he didn’t immediately love (and excel at) and I suspected he would be all about this. (He also has three medals already on his Jurassic Park-themed medal rack and has been itching to add more.) So I signed him up and on Saturday morning, Steve, Peanut, Nugget and I made our way down to Long Bridge Park in Arlington.

We took our time checking out the scene, listening to music, and taking pictures – and Nugget got a balloon from the Navy Federal tent at the race-day expo – until his wave was called and it was time to send my little runner through to the corrals! Did I cry a tiny bit? You know I did.

He just looked so big and brave walking through the check-in tent and getting ready to tackle his first race. Sniff! After he was settled in the corral, we found a spot to watch the runners take off – just a partially obstructed view, but we were able to see him cross the start line. Once he was off and away, we left the start area to find a good spot to stand and watch the finish (the course was secure and kids-only – except for race staff – so we couldn’t cheer him on mid-race). Steve and Peanut set up near the finishers’ area, but I found a space to squeeze in by the last corner on the course. I was behind a man, who kindly told me to let him know if I saw my kid and he would step aside so I could hop in front and take a picture. I thanked him, and he asked what Nugget was wearing – so I said a blue shirt and reddish-orange shorts, and my new friend pointed and said, “Is that him?” No, it couldn’t be, I said, he just started the race a few minutes ago and he’s just a little guy. But I peered at the little runner coming down the last hill and – wait! It was him!

Over the finish line in just around seven minutes – unreal! And he started near the back of the crowd and had to weave through a bunch of kids, so he must have actually picked up speed and been clocking closer to a six minute mile by the end. The kid is just insane.

He had an absolute blast and proudly wore his race shirt and medal all afternoon and all the next day – and he’s been begging me to sign him up for another race ever since. I asked him if the race bug had bit him and he said “Pretty hard.” Steve, for his part, jokingly groaned that we drove thirty minutes each way for Nugget to run seven, and made me promise that his next race will be closer to home. (I found a turkey trot with a 1-mile kids’ run – and race medals – about ten minutes from my house, so that’s the next one. Nugget could definitely train for and run a 5K at his age, given his level of interest and activity, but I would rather play it safe and stick to the 1-mile distance until he’s eight. He agrees!)

Saturday’s fun wasn’t the end of the weekend excitement, either. On Sunday morning, at the crack of dawn, we all piled into the car and Steve and the kids dropped me off on the National Mall for my race. Someday I would love to run the full Marine Corps Marathon, but for now a 10K is better suited to my busy life.

The course was just as fun and beautiful as I remembered! Running past the Capitol as the sun comes up – always a thrill. I’ve been living in the D.C. area since 2003 – except for a three-year hiatus in Western New York – and it never gets old. I still have those I can’t believe I live here moments on the regular, and this is definitely one of them.

After the Capitol, the course heads back up the Mall toward the Washington Monument, snakes through a few D.C. streets, and then heads for Arlington via the 14th Street Bridge. I’ve heard that this bridge is an absolute bear at mile 20 of the marathon, but at mile 2 of the 10K it’s not that bad.

Once in Arlington, the course winds through Crystal City (I did consider peeling off to my office and getting an Uber ride home, but decided to stick it out) and then ends up on highways for the last couple of miles. Those last few kilometers are a bit of a slog, and I looked forward to hitting the – now empty – Marine Corps Marathon starting corrals, because that meant we were hitting the last stretch.

Mile 26! Someday.

One more corner to go! The course ends on a hideous uphill – woof. I was dragging up the hill until I saw Steve and the kids waving and cheering. I ran to them for hugs and high-fives, then set off on the last 0.1 mile stretch to the finish line with an extra kick in my step.

Tired and bedraggled but proud! It felt so good to be back out absorbing that race day energy – I hadn’t run a race in-person since before the pandemic. Definitely high time to get back out there. And now I’m fired up and ready to run that turkey trot (a little better trained this time, hopefully).

If you’re a runner, what’s your favorite race?

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The Week in Pages: November 14, 2022

I flaked on you last week with this post – sorry about that. Have you ever seen the meme that reads “Adulthood is saying ‘next week things will calm down’ over and over until you die”? That’s my vibe right now. And here’s how I know it’s really hectic: every year I set a goal on the Goodreads Reading Challenge and it’s always the same number: 104, which works out to exactly two books a week, and since I typically read between two and three books a week – sometimes more and sometimes less – that’s been about the right number for me. Knowing that summer and fall are my busiest seasons, I try to build a cushion early in the year, and it’s a good thing I did this year. I’ve been checking my progress periodically and it’s dropped from eight books ahead of schedule, to six, to four, and yesterday it said “You’re on track!” My reading pace has dropped so much that I’ve burned through my entire cushion. Ouch.

Things have been so frenetic that I can’t remember offhand what I was reading the week before last – and yes, I could go look it up but I’m not going to do that – so let’s just blow past that one and talk about last week. I’d been saving The Starless Sea for a long time and decided it seemed like a good book to read in November. It was definitely a chilly-season-appropriate choice (the action pretty much all takes place in January) but I bogged down in it. After loving The Night Circus, I had high hopes for this but found myself agreeing with my BFF, Rebecca, who had been a bit disappointed. The story just felt disjointed, and while I loved the wealth of creative detail at first, eventually even that got overwhelming and I was just ready to be done. Can’t win ’em all.

After The Starless Sea I was looking for something much shorter and quicker to read, and I had Things Fall Apart out from the library with a looming deadline (haven’t been in that situation in awhile!) so I turned to that and read it in almost one sitting. It’s a slim novel – my edition clocked in at 207 pages – but packs an outsized punch and I found it incredibly compelling. I finished it this morning over my coffee, so watch this space: full Classics Club post coming soon. Next up I’m planning to read the first installment of Iris Origo’s World War II diaries, A Chill in the Air, and am really looking forward to it; I expect it will be fascinating.

Another bluebird day on the trail yesterday, and I was so mad at myself for forgetting to charge my wildlife camera – because we saw TWO bald eagles and an adorable screech owl, and there I was with only my iPhone. Rookie mistake.

What are you reading this week?

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Costa Rica 2022: Arenal Volcano National Park

After the Arenal 1968 trail, our next stop was just a few short minutes down the road – Arenal Volcano National Park.

We thought that hiking another trail to another volcano viewpoint might be a little bit redundant, but we weren’t willing to miss out on a beautiful national park when we had the opportunity to visit it. And the clouds were finally starting to clear, so it seemed like we might have another chance at a view of the entire volcano, this time not shrouded in clouds and mist.

Setting off down this short trail, Steve remarked, “I feel like I’m in Honey, I Shrunk the Kids!” I knew exactly what he meant. I wouldn’t have been at all surprised to see an elephant-sized ant come wandering down the trail.

Eventually we made it out of the dappled sunshine of the trailhead and into a shadier forest.

Most of the trail elevation gain was via a couple of green-painted metal staircases that blended in with the canopy.

Before we knew it, we reached a clearing and got our first really good volcanic view of the day. The skies had cleared and Arenal was out in all its imposing glory.

We spent a long time looking out over the volcano and taking in all the details – like this heart-shapped fissure.

It was fascinating to watch the clouds roll across the landscape and see the interplay of light and shadow on the volcano.

This was a really fascinating day. In addition to all the flora and fauna of the trails, it was just fascinating to see the volcano and talk about it. I felt a little guilty about enjoying myself so much – it felt a bit jarring to be out on the trail, soaking up sunshine and enjoying movement and fresh air and this compelling landscape when I knew that this volcano was deadly and was the source of a horrific tragedy within my parents’ lifetime. Interesting to reflect on how hiking can be personally enriching but we are walking through landscapes that have much larger context.

The trail back was fascinating too. It was always cool to see the famous walking palms (socratea exorrhiza). The trees “walk” from sunlight to shade by growing their roots in the direction they want to travel and then allowing old roots to lift out of the ground and die – wild. Did we call them Ents? You know we did.

We also saw a massive kapok tree, which we especially loved because Peanut starred as a caiman in a play called “Save the Great Kapok Tree!” in her kindergarten class.

Back at the trailhead! What a special place and a beautiful, fascinating hike.

Next week: when in Arenal, you swim in Catarata Rio Fortuna.

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Little Luxuries: Fall 2022 Edition

The other day, I was doing a Peloton ride with my friend Amanda, and the instructor – Robin, for those of y’all who are fellow Peloton-ers – said “The only thing gettting lit in my house after 9:00pm is a pumpkin spice candle!” As my friend Katie is fond of quoting, “You don’t find candles lit in frenetic houses.” Well, my house is definitely frenetic, and there is not much candle-lighting going on by the time I finally crash on the couch, later and later every evening. But I’m still finding little joys… the cozy season is definitely upon us, y’all. And it struck me that it’s been a minute since I shared the little luxuries that are making every day a little nicer and happier.

First, there’s that Peloton – not sure if it qualifies as a “little” luxury, considering it weighs as much as a baby elephant. But the ability it gives me to squeeze in movement even during the busiest workweek is definitely a luxury. I got it back in the spring, and as you can see based on this entry in Nugget’s “my mother’s favorite things” book which I received for Mother’s Day, I’ve been loving it since the moment it arrived in my house.

I’m not the only one who is enjoying it, unfortunately. The kids have adopted it and think it’s their new ride (wrong, kids, the Peloton is Mommy’s toy).

Related – in a busy week, the opportunity to get out, feel trail dirt under my boots, and breathe in fresh air definitely feels like a luxury. I get in neighborhood walks and runs as often as I can, but between a busy job and weekends that are getting more and more packed with kiddo sports, trail time is definitely a luxury, and one I’m trying to protect by making sure we carve out time for family hikes at least once a week. Views like this are a lovely bonus.

Another luxury, and one I enjoy anytime throughout the year – date nights with Steve. A couple of weeks ago we went out to a delicious Italian dinner in a historic mansion in our small town, then drove into D.C. to see Hamilton at the Kennedy Center. Third time we’ve seen it live, and it never gets old.

Those are some big luxuries, actually. A smaller one – delicious applies, which we picked at the beginning of the month and which we’ve been eating out of hand ever since. I was planning to reserve some of these for a pie, but we’re actually almost done with this half bushel – insane! They were just so good this year – crisp and sweet. I’ve been putting them into the kids’ lunches and snacks every day, and reserving a few for myself too.

And with the falling mercury has also come cravings for tea again. Recently, I dug out my electric kettle – a Christmas gift from my parents, years ago – and plugged it in. Only regret was: why didn’t I get this back out long ago? I used to keep it in my office and it has been sitting next to my home office desk since I cleaned out my desk after leaving my law firm in 2021. Now it’s out and being pressed into service multiple times a day; Steve has gotten into drinking tea recently too and has his own stash, while I’ve been drinking my way through a big basket of loose leaf tea that, to be honest, isn’t getting any younger. It’s been a good time to rediscover one of my favorite little luxuries, as I’ve been trying to cut back on the amount of coffee I was drinking; now I’m down to one cup of coffee in the morning – generally while I dash around making breakfasts, school lunches and snacks – and then I switch to black tea if I want more of a perk, and green or tisanes in the afternoon. It was surprisingly easy to cut down to just the morning coffee when I made the connection that it’s the hot beverage that appeals to me, and it doesn’t have to be caffeinated; hands curl around a teaming mug of herbal tea just as happily.

Lastly, this is another year-round luxury, but there’s nothing like a beautiful book – like a gorgeous Folio Society edition of Elizabeth Gaskell – and a cozy blanket. This soft woven throw from Tribe & True is my favorite for cuddling up with all year, but especially in the fall and winter.

What little luxuries are you enjoying this fall?

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Costa Rica 2022: Arenal 1968 Trail

Arenal is a massive cone-shaped volcano that towers over the surrounding area, including the town of La Fortuna and the neighboring Lake Arenal. The rich volcanic soil, bubbling hot springs and gorgeous flowers growing in the rich volcanic soil draw enthusiastic visitors – including us. Arenal erupted in 1968 and buried a village, and the Arenal 1968 trail acts as a monument to the tragic event.

Just off the parking lot was an exhibit with some information about the tragedy, and a scale model.

We set off on the trail in a cool mist – the day felt suitably somber to be hiking this particular trail.

The dirt trail was much darker in color and grittier in texture than other trails we had hiked in Costa Rica – that’s the volcanic soil.

There was also pumice all along the trail – we picked it up to see how light it was (and then put it back where we found it! #leavenotrace).

Massive tree roots! Pretty amazing to think that all of this foliage grew up after 1968.

Thanks to the rich volcanic soil, the trail was starred all the way up with absolutely spectacular orchids and lilies.

I’m sure I was driving Steve crazy, but I had to stop and take a picture of every! single! flower!

The trail climbed gently to a viewpoint that looked out over the side of the volcano.

Eventually, we reached the trail summit and were rewarded with a spectacular view. Even with the top of Arenal shrouded in mist, it was an arresting sight.

We watched for awhile as the clouds started to roll down off the mountain – hoping that the cone would come out so we could really take it in. The slope of the mountain did start to clear, but eventually we had to turn back and head for the car and our next hike.

More stunning flowers on our way down from the viewpoint…

We stopped to take in the view of Lake Los Patos and were surprised by two toucans swooping out of the trees and across the lake – easily identifiable by their huge yellow beaks. Sadly, I was not quick enough with my camera to capture them – those guys are fast. Steve mused that he hadn’t realized what a treasure the roosting toucan was that we saw while kayaking around Drake Bay on our first afternoon in Osa; all of the others we saw were almost impossible to capture.

We did get a good look at a Lesson’s Mot-Mot! Look at those tail bobbles!

Towards the end of the hike, we came up on a beautiful viewpoint overlooking Lake Arenal – look at that! I was really hoping to get out on the lake for a paddle, but the weather didn’t cooperate. Still such a treat to take it in from this vantage point.

Doesn’t get more beautiful!

Next week: another view of the volcano.

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Reading Round-Up: October 2022

Reading is my oldest and favorite hobby. I literally can’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t love to curl up with a good book. Here are my reads for October, 2022.

Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison – Fully reviewed here for The Classics Club Challenge. This was a powerful, unsettling, dreamlike, confusing and fascinating read, and one to which I can certainly see myself returning.

Death in Captivity, by Michael Gilbert – Definitely the highlight of the month here: I absolutely loved this golden age detective story set in an Italian POW camp in the waning days of World War II. An unpopular prisoner – believed by many to be feeding information to the Italian guards – is found dead in a tunnel that some of the prisoners have been digging in an escape attempt. The tunnel was believed to be a secret, and is inaccessible without the cooperation of at least three people. How did the victim get there, and was his death an accident or murder? This is a blend of a locked room detective novel with an adventure story, and I loved every page.

Miss Pym Disposes, by Josephine Tey – I’d been so looking forward to this story of intrigue and tragedy at a women’s physical fitness college, but it mostly fell flat for me.

Death on the Down Beat: An Orchestral Fantasy of Detection, by Sebastian Farr – For my birthday, Steve got me a subscription to the British Library Crime Classics – I know, I’m a lucky lady! This was my first month’s book and it was such a fun one. An unpopular orchestra conductor is shot dead in the middle of a performance, in full view of the entire orchestra and a 2,000-person audience. It turns out there were no shortage of people with a motive for murder, but who had the means and the opportunity? Detective Alan Hope thinks his way through the muddle via letters home to his wife, in which he encloses documents, news reports, and witness statements. I’ve seen some criticism that the author didn’t entirely play fair with the solution, and I think that’s right, but I still really enjoyed it and will revisit it to see if I can spot some of the buried nuggets I missed the first time around.

Pumpkinheads, by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks – Reading Pumpkinheads on Halloween night has become a favorite tradition of mine – this is the fourth year running and I’ve come to look forward to spending an hour in the Patch with Josiah, Deja, and all of their friends. It has everything I love about Halloween – pumpkins, hayrides, fall colors, campfires – and none of the spooky stuff. I find something new to smile at every time I read this; this time, it was Patch veteran Todd, who never left because he just really loves being a mime with a jack-o-lantern head. The moment he creepily jumps out of a shrub and Josiah greets him nonchalantly – “Hey, Todd” – too funny.

Bit of a slow reading month! A couple of reasons for this: as you know if you’ve been reading along with my weekly updates, I recently took on some new responsibilities at work, and that’s kept me extra busy – and drained my focus a little bit. Couple that with Nugget’s bedtime creeping later and later, and by the time I hit the couch on quite a few nights in October, I had no attention left to give a book. I never thought I’d see the day… ah, well. Another explanation: I read a couple of chunksters in October – Invisible Man was a time commitment, and I am almost done with Sylvia’s Lovers as of press time, and that one will count toward November’s total. So I was turning pages, you see, just a lot of them in only a few books. Well, low book totals or not, I had a major highlight last month: Death in Captivity is a contender for my top-ten list at year’s end; it was just that good. And I’m looking ahead to a good month of reading in November – I’ve got a few really exciting titles stacked up to get to this month. Watch this space!

What were your reading highlights from October?

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The Week in Pages: October 31, 2022

First of all – happy Halloween, friends! I hope you have a fun evening ahead – whatever that looks like for you, whether it’s trick-or-treating with your anklebiters, answering the door and exclaiming over costumes (my favorite part of Halloween, and it’s the great tragedy of my life that nowhere I’ve lived in adulthood has been a big draw for trick-or-treaters…), takeout and a scary movie, you name it. I will be heading out trick-or-treating with Cleopatra and a cowboy this year.

It was another slow reading week – ’tis the season of my current state of life, I guess, although I keep holding out hope for more reading time. I had another busy workweek and found myself working past 8:00 p.m. on multiple nights this week (it happens – at least I like what I do these days!) and also hosted my friend Zan for an overnight visit on Wednesday. We stayed up way too late, drinking wine and chatting as hard as we could – we had months of life to catch up on – and absolutely zero regrets. And then the weekend was as busy as they always are; it was Marine Corps Marathon weekend and Nugget and I were each running – him in the kids’ mile on Saturday, and me in the Marine Corps 10K on Sunday. (Legs are sore today.)

All that’s to say: I am still plodding through Sylvia’s Lovers in hardcover and Lovely War on audio. I’m less than 100 pages from the end of Sylvia’s Lovers now, so I will definitely finish it this week – mark my words! Not tonight, because it’s Halloween and my tradition for the last few years has been to read Rainbow Rowell’s delightful graphic novel Pumpkinheads on Halloween night. But hopefully tomorrow evening, because on Wednesday I leave for a quick trip to Seattle and I am not bringing that doorstopper with me. I’d say I probably wouldn’t finish Lovely War (I still have over eight hours to go, even listening on 1.1 speed) but with two cross-country flights ahead of me this week I actually might. Watch this space!

The first post-pandemic running race – consider the band-aid ripped! I rode in the DC Bike Ride last year, so that was an in-person event, but I haven’t actually toed a running start line since pre-2020. It felt so good to be back, and Nugget got bit hard by the running bug on Saturday and is already begging me to find him another race. I don’t want him running 5Ks until he’s eight, but luckily there is a nearby Turkey Trot with a kids’ mile, so it’s now on my list to register us both.

What are you reading for Mischief Night?

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Costa Rica 2022: Soda Lunch

As travelers who love to try the local food wherever we are visiting, Steve and I were keen to check out a traditional Costa Rican soda. A “soda” is what Costa Ricans call their local restaurants – there’s a whole range of them, but they are often mom and pop concerns, serving traditional Costa Rican food, and often open air. It seemed like just about every town and village we drove through had at least one soda, and we were determined to check one out and eat like locals. We were also hungry after hiking through Tenorio Volcano National Park, and Soda Rancho Irma Posada, on the road from Tenorio to Arenal, was calling our name.

As was the case with many of the sodas we saw on our travels, this one was open air. You placed your order at the window and then waited while the kitchen prepared your meal and placed it, piping hot, on the counter.

Very excited for our traditional soda experience!

I ordered this blackberry smoothie milkshake situation – I don’t know what it was exactly, but I do know that it was absolutely delicious, refreshing, and hit the spot after a long, sweaty hike in the jungle.

While I waited for my lunch, I wandered around the grounds and checked out the rows of potted plants. It was such an absolutely delightful place to have lunch.

Each table had a selection of popular condiments. The Lizano salsa – that’s the brown bottle with the green and white label above – was my favorite. Felix, our guide in Monteverde, had liberally doused his lunch in Lizano when we ate with him at the park cafe in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, and I decided to give it a try. YUM.

Food’s here! This is a pretty typical Costa Rican lunch plate; we ate this sort of thing rather a lot, and zero complaints here. I’d read, before the trip, that Costa Rican food was not especially exciting or anything to write home about – I couldn’t disagree more. Yes, it’s heavily based on the rice and beans combination, but always accompanied by fresh vegetables and delicious sauces. I loved the food.

Full of lunch, we tumbled back into our rental car and hit the road. Before we knew it, Arenal was rising from the fields, off in the distance. Are we driving into Pompeii?

Next week: hiking around an active volcano. Check in with me then!

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Tourist in my Own Town: Walking Embassy Row

A few weeks ago, my parents and their friends stopped by on a flying visit on their way back north after a trip to Hilton Head (lucky people). I planned some fun activities to entertain them while they rested their wheels before the next leg of their journey – starting with a hike at Great Falls in the morning. In the afternoon, Steve wanted to watch football but I suggested that those who would like another walk might check out Embassy Row. I used to work in the neighborhood and walked up and down Embassy Row on many a lunch break, and I’ve attended parties and open houses at several of the Embassies, but somehow never think to bring guests here. It’s just such a uniquely D.C. thing, I decided I was remiss. My mom, her friend, and Peanut chose to come along – so it ended up being a girls’ outing. We parked near Dupont Circle and wandered up Massachusetts Avenue. One of the first big Embassies spotted – the Greek Embassy! I’ve actually been in this one, for an open house during Embassy Days, waaaaaaaay back in 2009 (feels like a lifetime ago!).

The Indian Embassy!

Several of the Embassies feature statues of their most illustrious citizens either on Embassy grounds or nearby. The Gandhi statue is one of my favorites.

Another freedom fighter – Nelson Mandela, who raises a fist just outside the South African Embassy.

One of my favorite things about Embassy Row is how different each of the Embassy buildings are. I love to check out the architecture and grounds. The Japanese Embassy is a massive compound set back from the street.

Many of the Embassies were flying the Ukrankian flag alongside their own flags, showing support – it was so heartening to see.

I have walked Embassy Row more times than I can count, and I swear I have a different favorite building every time. This time, it might have been Cote d’Ivoire, with its modern architecture, big glass windows through which cultural artifacts were proudly displayed, and this:

Elephant statue! I love elephants – they’re my favorite land animal – so naturally I found this enchanting.

We made it our goal to walk all the way to the British Embassy, which is up near the U.S. Naval Observatory – I love a long walk and I always want to make it at least this far. Another one of my favorites – I love the modern building and the subtle nods to the U.K., like the lion, crown and unicorn in the brick.

Hello, Prime Minister Churchill! (Peanut thought he was giving the peace sign – I explained that no, it’s a V for victory.)

Such a fun walk – I couldn’t believe I’d never taken my mom up to Embassy Row before (the parents have driven past some of the Embassies at various points, but never actually spent time walking around and really looking). We wrapped up our afternoon with tea and cookies at Teaism, so basically, it was a perfect girls’ day out in D.C.

Have you ever walked up Embassy Row?